Master Chiu was born in Loo Wan Village,
Sha Ho Town, Yick County,
Shun Tung Province, Chiu's family. His mother died when he was
5.
His grandmother looked after him for 2 years and eventually
returned him to his father. Unfortunately, his father was a fanatic
opera fan, therefore, he hardly saw his father. Chiu was cared
for
mostly by a neighboring lady who lived next door.

One hot day, Chiu was resting in front
of a temple, an old monk saw
him and realized this person could be a good martial artist. The
old monk asked the old lady's permission if he could take Chiu
and
teach him martial arts. Because Chiu's father had died when Chiu
was 12, the old lady agreed and gave the monk her address so Chiu
could be returned to her. The monk took Chiu to the Chi Chong
Temple on Dai Wah mountain, in Ping Do county, Shun Tung. Chiu
studied from two other monks: "Clear Stream (Ching Chuen)"
and
"Wise East (Gok Dong)". They taught him Shao Lin Long
Fist, single
moves, short distance fighting using hand method, changing method,
control, fight back, attack, falls, chi gung, iron body, weapons,
weight lifting, riding, and archery.

Chiu spent 10 years at the mountain
until his two Sifus passed
away. Chiu returned home and found a job at Dough Sing Security,
where he was a security guard protecting valuable shipments like
jewelry. Dough Sing Security closed down after its owner died.
Afterward, Chiu went to stay with his uncle who lived in Yin Tai.
There, his uncle offered him a job in his trading company. Chiu
did
not accept the offer because he was not interested in becoming
a
business man. He also didn't think he had mastered all the martial
arts techniques yet. Therefore, he and a few of his rich friends
hired a famous martial artist, Yum Fung Suey to teach them Preying
Mantis style for 3 years. After the three years, they then followed
Master Chi Sau Jun for another 4 years. Yum and Chi were the sixth
generation of the Tai Chi Mantis. After 7 years of training, Chiu's
level had progressed immensely. Later, Chiu was hired by the Mow
Ping county. In the Dai Yew village, he taught Kung Fu. A year
later Chiu's uncle invited him again to help him in his business.
Chiu returned to Yin Tai and was stationed at Dai Lin doing trading
business. However, he resigned his post because at that time,
the
Japanese ruled Dai Lin. Chiu also started a martial arts training
center in Yin Tai, hoping to train some students to help spread
the
Mantis style.

A friend of Chiu talked him into traveling
South to teach martial
arts so the Mantis style would be spread down to the southern
parts
of China. Chiu moved to Hong Kong for the first two years and
later
he moved to Macau and started a Kung Fu training center. Chiu
stayed there for 15 years until the second world war was over.
He
then accepted an invitation from Vietnam to teach Kung Fu in both
North and South Vietnam. Master Chiu spent a total of 15 years
overseas and taught thousands of students. He then moved back
to
Hong Kong and taught the artistry of Kung Fu until he passed away
at the age of ninety-one (1991).